


Something Happened On The Way To Heaven

by colocakes



Category: Fire Emblem Heroes, Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Christmas, Family, M/M, japanese ending for fire emblem, orphanage ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-03
Updated: 2019-01-03
Packaged: 2019-10-03 08:57:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17281049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/colocakes/pseuds/colocakes
Summary: The first Christmas the orphanage has had. Niles is still dumbfounded by it all and Corrin is just too happy to enjoy his time with the children.





	Something Happened On The Way To Heaven

A quick fic made for the niles gift trade thing on twitter! Thought it would be fun to do.

Merry late holiday/christmas all that jazz folks!

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A cheerfully loud chime of a clock woke Niles from the blissfully warm embrace of sleep. With a groan, he buried his face into the soft down of the pillow. Reaching for the warmth of his little prince, hopefully to pull him back into the folds of sleep, he realized as his hand hit empty space that he wasn’t there. 

For a moment, he panicked, before familiar humming caught his attention. Lifting his head from the pillow, he sighed in relief. Corrin, oblivious, was getting dressed. A warm sweater, since the cold did something to make him ill. 

Niles took the time to just watch the young man. Another year of marriage, another year of wondering how he'd lucked into such a wonderful life. Distantly, he could hear the staff moving about, but mornings were still for them. 

A smile quirked his lips, messy hair falling into Niles' face. “Mornin'.” 

Turning, arms filled with boxes, Corrin blinked, smiling. “Oh, hey there, sleepyhead. I was wondering how long you'd be in bed.” he teased.

Niles didn’t bother answering that, glancing at the clock and making a face. “Its barely 5 in the morning.”

“What can you do?” Corrin said, a happy note to his voice. “Its Christmas. We have to get started early.”

Christmas. A jolt of excitement sent Niles sleepily making his way from bed. The sandy haired prince laughed softly as the man scrambled to get dressed. This was the first year the orphanage would be celebrating and there was so much to do. 

“Relax, love.” Corrin said, but even he had caught the bug. “The kids are still asleep.”

Niles pulled his clothes on, barely thinking about whether or not he was presentable. “They wont be forever.” 

An amused hum escaped Corrin, who strolled over to gently brush the man's snowy hair with his fingers. “They're not waking up until 7. It'll be alright. Your pants are on backwards.”

So they were. 

000 

Mornings were usually filled with sleepy breakfasts and conversation. Work was left at the door. Today, they willingly allowed it to stroll in and make itself at home. Christmas wasn’t something Niles had ever had the privilege to participate in before Leo had introduced him to it. Even then, it was something he watched from afar. 

If you'd told him a year ago, that he'd be happily arranging gifts under an enormous tree and standing back to admire it, Niles probably wouldn’t have believed that. He might have, but he'd been struggling to accept that he'd found someone like Corrin still and the concept of a warm and happy Christmas morning was still foreign to him.

Upstairs, the children were sleepily making their way to the bathrooms. In the kitchens, Niles made sure there was enough food being made to feed what may as well be an army. Children ate like wolves, he thought, personally stepping in to help finish the waffles.

The work was worth it, though, to see the way the children lit up. Many of them had never seen this much food before, least of all had a Christmas. Every kind of breakfast food possible was laid out along the long tables in the dining room and Corrin made sure everyone got at least some of each dish. 

Corrin stopped beside a pair of siblings, a warm smile on his face. “Getting enough to eat, Kana?”

The small boy looked up, cheeks stuffed, and nodded vigorously. “Mhm!!”

Beside him, an older girl smiled wide and waved. “Its really good!”

Corrin laughed softly, wiping her brother's face with a napkin. “I'm glad, Nina. You two eat up, alright? We're all going out later.”

The two cheered excitedly and it didn’t take long for word to spread around the dining hall. Perhaps it was unprofessional, but Corrin had taken special interest in Kana and his older sister Nina. They were such sweet kids, always happy to see him. 

Once, he'd brought up the topic to Niles. The man hadn’t been too surprised to find that Corrin was attached. He'd always been a softie. They'd arrived that summer, exhausted and mere wisps of children. Corrin had made it his personal mission to make them into healthy, happy kids. Along the way, Niles had gotten pulled into the makeshift family. 

Not that he minded, he thought, watching the trio talk. He was busy helping a child cut a waffle, listening to the boy talk excitedly about how Santa had filled his stocking with candy and a toy horse. It did something special to his heart, to hear the children around him all happily chattering about their visit. 

000 

Presents were doled out by name, in parts. It would have been chaos otherwise, cramming 40 children into the grand living room and expecting it to go smoothly. Each child happily accepted their gifts, eyes wide in wonder as they tore into the wrapping paper. Niles was the official paper taker. A thankless job, he thought, scooping up the bundles of ribbons. 

Still, watching children smile and laugh was always a heartwarming experience. More so, when he knew that many of them had come from hard lives. 

When each group was finished, they'd be moved along to play and enjoy their day off from lectures and chores. The last group of the morning were particularly excited, already suspecting that their caretakers were working with Santa. 

Over the tops of their heads, Niles could easily pick out Nina's sandy hair and Kana's snowy head. As they moved down the list, he could practically feel their impatience. At long last, the group had dwindled to just the siblings, who blinked owlishly. 

Corrin offered two large boxes, a warm smile on his face. “Merry Christmas.”

Kana dove for his, pulling apart the paper happily. He'd watched others long enough, it was his turn. Nina hung back, watching her own present as if it might bite her. Corrin set it down, coughing into his hand. That seemed to snap her out of it, because Nina set upon her own present like it'd be taken away if she didn’t 

Two big green eyes stared up at Nina, from the face of a doll. Long chestnut hair fell in fat curls around its face, a beautifully embroidered dress on her body. Beside it, an equally detailed horse doll. Nina had seen it in the window of a toy store a few months ago. She'd wanted it, but never expected to get it. 

She'd wanted this doll ever since she'd seen it in a store front, months ago. Her mouth hung open, gently lifting the doll from it's paper bedding. Swallowing hard, she held it close. Kana looked up, blinking dumbly. 

“S-Sis, are you okay...?”

Niles watched the girl warily, not knowing what to do. She took a long breath, eyes welling up. Corrin made a soft noise and went to her, gathering Nina up into a hug. She buried her face in his shoulder. 

Kana seemed so confused and lost with the way his sister was reacting. He'd never seen her like this before. Corrin rocked her gently, murmuring something to her. Nodding, Nina sniffled and stepped back and rubbed at her eyes with the heel of her palm. 

A weak smile turned up the corners of her lips, as she held the doll closer. “T-Tell Santa I said thank you.”

Corrin's smile threatened to become a full on grin. “I will.”

000 

Niles helped a girl into one of the many sleighs that lined the drive leading up to the orphanage. Bright red and decked out in garland, they seemed something right out of a story book. He'd thought it a bit silly, but Corrin had insisted. 

Sleigh rides through the snowy forest were a must. A Christmas necessity. Or so he'd claimed. Niles didn’t have the heart to argue the decision and honestly, the kids all seemed so excited. 

Nina and Kana were settled in with Corrin, wrapped up against the cold. Despite his poor resistance to the cold, the young prince looked positively delighted to be there. Niles hoped he wouldn’t regret that choice. 

Once everyone was seated and snug as a bug in their blankets, Niles settled in beside Corrin and the ride began. It started with a jolt, the voices of the children rising with excitement. The orphanage was set back against a forest, the gardens stretching into the boundaries of the woods. Just beyond, was a pathway through the sprawling country side. 

As the drivers began to guide their sleighs along, Niles couldn’t help but marvel at how lovely the view was. The trees were spindly things, but the snow lining the bark stood out. Snowflakes fell in leisurely strings, seeming to halt mid air. In the distance, between the trunks, farmhouses with their chimney's smoking could be seen. 

Beside him, Nina cooed as she spotted a deer trotting between the trees. Corrin smiled, petting her gently. “It looks like a doe.” he said.

Kana was far more interested in the lake they were passing, the icy top shimmering faintly. From behind, children were pointing at this or that, talking excitedly or making little whoops of joy as the sleighs sped up. As the sleigh turned, the boy leaned into Niles and laughed. 

It ended as the sleighs came to a sprawling farm, the children happily getting out. They talked loudly and Corrin felt light and airy at the sight of so many wide smiles. Niles clapped and got the children's attention, guiding them inside for cider and hot donuts. 

Kana ate at least three donuts, cheeks full, and Nina rolled her eyes and told him he'd choke. On the way back, they were fast asleep against Niles and Corrin. Looking down at their round little faces, it was hard to imagine someone not wanting them for even a second. Glancing up, Niles was surprised to see his husband equally sleepy, eyes slipping closed as the sleigh moved steadily through the frosty ground. 

A nice way to end a happy winter day, he mused. 

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End file.
